LESVOS

Lesvos (or Lesbos) is the third largest island in Greece after Crete and Evia. Like Chios, it lies off the coast of Asia Minor, just 10 km from Turkey. The island is characterized by two large, almost closed bays, Kalloni and Gera. The smaller Gera is located in the southern part of the island. The larger bay is Kalloni, which is famous for fishing for the popular sardines (sprats).

Thanks to its extensive forests and more than 11 million olive trees that cover most of the area, Lesvos is called the "Emerald Island". Lesvos is the second largest producer of olive oil. Only the northwestern part of the island is arid with sparse vegetation.

The island is of volcanic origin and volcanic activity can be seen in various places on the island in the form of gushing healing thermal springs - Eftalou Spa, Polichnitos Hot Springs, Lisvori Hot Springs.

Another proof of volcanic activity is the largest and most visited natural monument of the island - the Petrified Forest. It is one of the two largest petrified forests in the world (for the second Petrified Forest you have to go to Arizona in the USA). The unique park is the remains of a prehistoric forest, which was petrified due to volcanic activity. In several places of the vast area of the park you can admire the brightly colored fossils of the trunks of giant trees, whose age is estimated at 20 million years. The forest was declared a protected natural monument. The entire island joined the UNESCO global network of geoparks in 2012.

Mythology

The first inhabitant of Lesbos was Xanthos Triopou, who came from Argos as the leader of the Pelasgians. Xanthos renamed the island from its original name "Issa" to "Pelasgia". Seven generations later, after the great flood, he sailed to the island of Makareus (Makarios or Makar) and became king of Lesbos.

Makarios had five daughters - Mithymna, Mytilene, Antissa, Arisva and Issa - after whom the cities of Lesbos are named.

Makarios had five daughters - Mithymna, Mytilene, Antissa, Arisva and Issa - after whom the cities of Lesbos are named. And also several sons to whom Makarios entrusted the rule of his new colonies - Kydrolaos ruled Samos, Neandrus ruled Kos, Leukippos settled in Rhodes and another son ruled Chios. After another son named Eresus, the present-day city of Eressos was named.

However, the present-day island of Lesbos was named after another immigrant. When Lapithis' son Lesbos (grandson of Aeolus) heeded the advice of the oracle, he set out with other colonists to the island of Lesbos. Here he married Makarios' daughter Mithymna and, having become famous, he named the island of Lesbos after himself.

The islands where Makarios and his sons ruled were called the "Islands of the Blessed". There were several reasons for this. King Makarios issued a law during his reign that greatly contributed to the common good, and he called this law "Lion". The combination of the most fertile soil from the wide area, an excellent location, a mild climate and just rulers could only be envied by other locations on the mainland and the surrounding islands.

Homer mentions Lesbos in his works Iliad and Odyssey. The heroes of the Trojan War Achilles and Ajax buried their comrade Palamides on the island. On the road between Vatera and Agia Fokas you can see the well of Achilles (Achilliopigado).

Poet Sappho

Although the name of the island is associated with a man named Lesbos who settled there, the name for homosexual relationships between women - lesbian love or lesbianism (formerly the term Sapphism was also used) was derived from this name. It was thanks to the efforts of the native Sappho, the most important lyric poet of antiquity, who became popular with the lesbian community because her works celebrate love between women.

Sappho was born in the village of Eressos around 630 BC. She grew up with her mother and three brothers, having lost her father in childhood. Her husband was Kerkylas, a wealthy man from Andros, with whom she had a daughter named Kleis.

During the political unrest on Lesbos, she was forced into exile. She found temporary exile in Syracuse, Sicily.

Sappho died around 570 BC, at the age of 50-60. Her popularity and fame are evidenced by the coins that were minted on Lesbos after her death. She was honored by the erection of statues in Syracuse and Pergamon.

It is sometimes said that she committed suicide by jumping off a cliff on Lefkada because of her unrequited love for the shepherd Phaon. However, this theory is just a rumor spread by Ovid, and there are no historical sources that would confirm the suicide.

Another legend is related to her sexuality.

After returning to Lesbos, she founded a circle for girls from aristocratic families, where she worshipped the goddess of love Aphrodite and the nine Muses - goddesses of art, science and literature - with music and poetry. She was connected to the members of the circle by emotional affection, even passion, which she expressed in her poems and songs. However, Sappho was apparently not a clear lesbian. This is indicated not only by her marriage, but also by the love letters exchanged with her by the poet Alcaeus. The island of Lesbos is still the center of the lesbian community.

Sappho was admired in antiquity - by Plutarch, Pindros and Solon. Plato called her "wise" and "the tenth muse", Julian and Antipater "the female Homer". According to Lucian, she was "the sweet voice of Lesbos" and for Strabo she was "a wonderful monster". After Solon heard one of their compositions, he is said to have said "I want to learn it and die." Sappho created a unique poetic form, known as the "Sapphic stanza" (also Sapphic verse), which became very widespread in ancient lyric poetry and is still used today. Sappho, as the first poet, wrote in the first person about her feelings.

Later poets, such as Horace, Ovid, Cato, Petrarch, Boccaccio and Lord Byron, also admired Sappho. Horace says in his 2nd Ode that even the dead in the underworld listen with admiration to her songs.

Sappho's poems are still an inspiration to this day for women who love other women. Sappho was the first to write about such love. She became famous, but also unwanted and forbidden.

650 verses have survived from her work, of which only one poem, "Prayer to Aphrodite", is complete. Even in Hellenistic Alexandria (2nd - 3rd century BC), her work was divided into nine books.

For the church, poems associated with love between women were inappropriate and immoral. The first public burning of books was committed by Archbishop Gregory of Nazianzus in 380 AD in Constantinople. The remaining works were burned by order of Pope Gregory VII in Rome.

In the 19th century, papyri containing a small portion of the poet's lost poetry were found in Egypt. The papyri had lain in the ground for two millennia, serving as wrappings for mummies, sacred animals, and coffins. Major discoveries of other poems were made in 2014 and 2021.

History

In addition to art, the island is associated with the beginnings of scientific thought. Aristotle spent two years here observing the ecosystem of the Kalloni Bay, which resulted in the writing of his works on biology.

From archaeological excavations, we know that there was a civilization on the island parallel to the Mycenaean and Trojan civilizations.

Around the 11th century BC, Aeolian colonies were founded on the island. During this period, the city of Mytilene began to flourish, develop economically, and the settlement of the opposite coast began. Later, in the 6th century BC, the island became a center of trade with Egypt. Gradually, Lesbos was ruled by the Persians, Athens, Sparta and the powerful Rome. After the division of the Roman Empire, it fell under Byzantine rule. Until the 14th century AD, no one was very interested in Lesbos. During this period, it was devastated several times by raids by the Moors, Venetians and Crusaders.

Turkish rule lasted for almost 450 years, leaving an indelible mark on the island in the form of the architecture of mosques, baths and public fountains. The island was liberated in 1912 and officially annexed to Greece in 1920.

Beaches

The beaches on Lesbos are very diverse and, due to the size of the island, are never crowded. In the south lies Vatera, which is one of the longest in Greece with a length of over 7 kilometers. It is made up of coarse sand with small pebbles. Near Plomari is the beautiful pebble beach of Agios Isidoros.

In the west lies Skala Eressou, a beach with fine gray sand, which is known for its bohemian atmosphere, many cafes built on wooden stilts over the water and calm sea. The beaches in Petra are characterized by sand, a gradual entrance to the sea and the iconic church of Panagia Glykofilousa, towering on a rock in the middle of the village.

For families with children, the sandy beaches around Skala Kallonis with calm, warm and very shallow sea are also a very interesting alternative.

A distinctive feature of the island are the thermal springs, such as those in Eftalou or Thermi, where hot water with a high mineral content flows directly into the historic baths or directly into the sea, which is used to treat rheumatism and for relaxation.

How to get there

The main gateway to Lesvos is the Mytilene International Airport "Odysseas Elytis". During the summer season, direct charter flights from many European capitals arrive here. Year-round connections with mainland Greece are provided by regular flights from Athens and Thessaloniki, operated by Aegean Airlines and Sky Express.

Another, but much slower option is the ferry lines from the Athens port of Piraeus or the nearby islands of Chios, Limnos and Samos. Due to the proximity of the Turkish coast, there is also a line between Mytilene and the Turkish port of Ayvalik. You can book ferry tickets in advance, for example via the Ferryhopper service.